Mangaluru: Torrentail rains that lashed the city have cast doubts over the inaugural ‘Monsoon Surf Challenge’ being hosted at the Panambur beach here from June 2-7. As many as 30 surfers from various surfing schools in the country are likley to brave the difficult and testing monsoon waves of the Arabian Sea, if all goes before the sceduled event.
Conceptualised and hosted by Mantra Surf Club — India’s first surf school, the event is being organised by the Kanara Surfing and Water Promotion Council and carries a winner’s cheque of Rs 75000 while the runner’s up gets richer by Rs 50,000.
The event is sanctioned by the Surfing Federation of India and has support from corporate houses and government bodies like the TT Group, Firefox Cycles, Union Bank of India, Mangalore Refinery Petrochemical Ltd, Mangalore Chemical Fertilizers and New Mangalore Port Trust Ltd.
The Mantra Surf Club aims to make the ‘Monsoon Surf Challenge’ an annual affair to be hosted just after the Indian Open of Surfing every year.
“We are happy to see this unique event taking place in Mangalore for top surfers in India, our aim is to continuously promote Mangalore as a premier surfing destination in the country. This event will provide a platform for top Indian surfers to challenge themselves during the famed monsoon surf season,” Kanara Surfing and Water Promotion Council Secretary Gaurav Hegde said.
Dakshina Kannada district administation, which is busy with relief and rescue operations,in the aftermath of torrential rains that lashed the city on May 29, is likley to take a call on hosting the event in a day or two.
